1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a lever switch for a vehicle, and particularly to that easy to assemble.
2. Description of Related Art
Lever switches for vehicles adopt, for example, a structure shown in FIGS. 5 and 6. FIG. 5 is a partially sectional view thereof and FIG. 6 is an exploded perspective view of essential parts thereof.
A control lever 50 includes an operating section 51 formed extending from a shaft base 6f having rotating shafts 6d on both sides. More specifically, it has a triple structure having a second lever 6 extending from a shaft base 6f, and a cylindrical first lever 3 on the outside and a third lever 22 on the inside with the second lever 6 centered, each of which can rotate about the second lever 6.
The rotating shafts 6d on both sides of the shaft base 6f are fitted in respective shaft holes 35d formed in both sidewalls of a swing block 35, and the control lever 50 is rotatably retained around the rotating shaft 6d by the swing block 35.
An extension portion 6e extending in the opposite direction from the second lever 6 is provided at the shaft base 6f. The extension portion 6e holds a ball 26 biased by a spring 25 and pushes it to a cam 35b of the swing block 35. The ball 26 and the cam 35b constitute a click mechanism of the control lever 50.
The swing block 35 has a rotating shaft 35a at the bottom wall and a rotating shaft 35e on the upper wall, as shown in FIG. 6. The rotating shaft 35a is fitted in a shaft hole lc formed in a support surface A of a casing 1, and the rotating shaft 35e is fitted in a shaft hole of a cover 1A covering the casing 1, respectively, which are retained in the casing 1 together with the retained control lever 50 such that they can be rotated about the rotating shaft 35a. 
A pole plate 10 is mounted under the support surface A of the casing 1, and has a turn signal switch, a headlight selection switch, a windshield wiper switch, and a washer switch thereon.
A contact surface abutting on a contact portion 27b of an arm 27 supported by the casing 1 is formed on the lower surface of the extension portion 6e at the end of the shaft base 6f. A pushing portion 27c is slid vertically by rotating the control lever 50 vertically (in the plane parallel to the paper in FIG. 5) to move a moving part 29 biased by a spring 28, thereby switching the headlight selection switch.
The end of the third lever 22 passing through the second lever 6 is connected to a rotating knob 4 adjacent to the first lever 3, shown in FIG. 6, at the inner end of which an operating rod 22a shaped like a gearwheel is provided. The operating rod 22a is engaged with a moving part 34 of the wiper switch, which is rotatably supported by a substrate 32 mounted to the pole plate 10 through a through-hole 35c at the center of the rotating shaft 35a of the swing block 35. When the rotating knob 4 is rotated, the moving part 34 is rotated to switch the wiper switch.
The first lever 3 is rotatably supported by the second lever 2, at the inner end of which an operating rod (not shown) is provided at the back of the operating rod 22a. The end of the operating rod is brought into contact with a moving part of the washer switch, and the washer switch is switched by rotating the first lever 3.
When the control lever 50 is rotated back and forth (in the plane perpendicular to the paper in FIG. 5), the turn signal switch (not shown) is switched.
A switch for operating, for example, a constant speed controller is provided in, and also a slide knob 16 and a push button 17 for operating it are provided at the end of the control lever 50.
The switches and the vehicle are connected by wire leads 11. The wire leads 11 taken out near the shaft base 6f of the control lever 50 through a gap formed between the first lever 3 and the second lever 6 are passed through the through-hole 35c of the swing block 35, as shown in FIG. 5B, are then passed through the shaft hole 1c in the support surface A, are then led out of the casing 1, and connected to the vehicle. FIG. 5B is a sectional view of the rotating shaft 35a, seen from the support surface A of the casing 1.
In the conventional lever switch for a vehicle, however, during assembly, when the shaft base 6f of the second lever 6 is mounted to the swing block 35 and they are then assembled into the casing 1, the wire leads 11 must be passed through the through-hole 35c of the swing block 35 in advance. Accordingly, a process for passing the wire leads 11 into the through-hole 35c is needed, thus increasing man-hours.
Particularly when a connector attached to each end of the wire leads is larger than the through-hole 35c, first, only the wire-lead main body must be passed, and after assembly, the connector must be mounted, further increasing man-hours and resulting in inefficient production.
Accordingly, in consideration of the above conventional problems, it is an object of the present invention to provide a lever switch for a vehicle facilitating assembly and achieving efficient production.
To this end, according to the present invention of claim 1, in a lever switch for a vehicle comprising a control lever in which switches are housed in an operating section thereof, a swing block, and a casing, the control lever being rotatably retained by the swing block, the swing block having a rotating shaft formed on the bottom wall thereof, the rotating shaft being fitted in a shaft hole of the casing to be supported by the casing, and the control lever being allowed to rotate in two intersecting planes with respect to the casing, a recessed portion communicating with the control lever is formed in the outer peripheral face of the rotating shaft or the inner peripheral face of the shaft hole.
Since space is formed between the rotating shaft and the shaft hole by forming the recessed portion in the outer peripheral face of the rotating shaft or the inner peripheral face of the shaft hole, the wire leads jutting from the switches can be fitted in this recessed portion to pass through the lower part of the casing.
The recessed portion can be formed, in the rotating shaft for example, extending from the upper end face of the bottom wall to the lower end face of the rotating shaft.
According the present invention of claim 3, the recessed portion has a retaining section for retaining the wire leads.
Since the retaining section is provided, the lever switch can be assembled with the wire leads retained in the recessed portion, thus improving workability during assembly.
The retaining section can be constituted by tongue pieces formed extending from, for example, an opening of the recessed portion as part of the rotating shaft. The tongue pieces retain the wire leads mounted in the recessed portion.
The retaining section can also be constituted by a plurality of grooves formed in parallel with the recessed portion in the recessed portion.
In this case, the wire leads can easily be retained in the recessed portion by press fitting the wire leads in the grooves.